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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. band — a music group
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. ground — the earth
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. pit — in a race
  12. band — a ring
  13. ground — crushed
  14. lie — to recline
  15. ground — a position
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. ruler — a monarch
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. mine — for digging
  20. pit — a hole
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. ruler — for measuring

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com